Floating breakwater



(No Model.) l

J. M. WHITE.

PLOATING BREAKWATER. l

No. 436,644. Patented Sept. 16, 1890.

TUN QN W/TNESSES.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOI-IN M. WHITE, OF LONG BRANCH, NEW JERSEY.

FLOATING BREAKWATER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 436,644, dated September 16, 18'90. Application filed February 24, 1890. Serial No. 341,631. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN M. VHITE, of Long Branch city, in the county of Monmouth and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Floating Brealrwater, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of the invention is to provide a new and improved ioatin g breakwater, which is simple and durable in construction and specially designed for the protection of coasts by overcoming the action of heavy waves in completely breaking their force before they reach the shore.

The invention consists of a series of pontons pivotally connected with each other, and each composed of longitudinal and transverse hollow cylindrical tubes, and projections extending upward from the said tubes.

The invention also consists of certain parts and details and combinations of the same, as will be hereinafter fully described, and then pointed out in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the iigures.

Figure lis aplan View of the improvement. Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view Vof the same with the anchors removed, and Fig. 3 is a sectional side elevation of the same as applied on the line a; of Fig. 2.

The improved breakwater A is provided with two or more pontons B B', each 0f which comprises longitudinal hollow cylindrical tubes C and C', rigidly connected with each other by transverse hollow cylinder-tubes D, arranged parallel with each other and about three in number, arranged at the ends of the tubes C and C' and in the middle, as is plainly shown in the drawings. On each of the transverse tubes D are secured upwardlyprojecting hollow offsets E, closed on top.

Suitable partitions can be placed at intervals in the several tubes C and D, so as to form water-tight compartments, so that in case of accident only one of the compartments will iill with water, while the others still retain their buoyancy. The two pontons B and B' are pivotally connected with each other at the adjacent ends of the respective longitudinal tubes C C and C' C by joints F,

of any preferred construction, which. permit an up-and-down swinging of the pontons.

At the outer ends of thelongitudinaltubes C C' of the nearest ponton B are secured eyes G, connected with two chains l-I, connected with the inner end of a chain I, extending toward the land and carrying a suitable anchor J, embedded in the ground in the usual manner. Similar eyes G are arranged at the outer ends of the longitudinal tubes C and C' of the ponton B', and these eyes G' are connected with the chains K and K', eX- tending seaward and slightly diverging from each other, as is shown in Fig. 1.

On the outer ends of the chains K and I'' are secured anchors L and L', embedded in the bottom of the ocean, so as t0 securely hold the pontons in place against the force of the incoming waves. The anchor J on the chain I serves to hold the pontons in place against the force of the outgoing waves or under-tow. lrVhen the device is used, it is iioating on the water with the anchors L and L out seaward and the anchor J on the beach to hold the pontons in place, as above described.

The joint F between the two pontons B and B' is placed over the usual bar N., formed in the bottom of the ocean near the shore,

and is illustrated in Fig. 3. The incoming.

waves have their force broken by dragging against the projections of the transverse and longitudinal tubes D D on the pontons B and B' ,for as the waves roll inward over the ponton B they come in contact with the several projections on its transverse tubes and finally reach the projections on the transverse tubes of the other ponton B, so that by the time the waves reach the inner end of thepontonB their force is completelybroken.

It will be seen that as the pontons B and B are pivotally connected wit-h each other they ride freely on the waves, so as to adjust themselves according to the forms of the waves, thereby more effectively breaking the force of the waves when the latter travel from one ponton to the other. It will further be understood that when the device is placed in position to do this work the outermost transverse tube D on the ponton B' lies with its side to the incoming waves, and as it floats on the surface of the water it meets each and every wave so as to split them horizontally,

IOO

and at the same time the upright projections E split the sheet of Water that passes over the top of that transverse tube D in a vertical direction, whereby the water is thrown at an angle onto the neXt following transverse tube D, and there the above-described operation is repeated, and so on until the entire wave is finally broken up, so that when it reaches the last transverse tubeD in the ponton B the part of the wave passing over this last transverse tube will have its surface sufficiently smooth so that it has very little action on the shore to disturb the sand. A portion of the water which is displaced downward to the bottom will have a tendency to force a ba'r N inward to the shore, and the farther it goes in that direction the less action the Waves have on it in the way of carrying it away, as there will be a great tendency to ywash the bar inward, on account of the Water that passes under it being held down by the breakwaterand not allowed to rise in the form of Waves, but traveling the length of the breakwater in a straight line with the bottom of the pontons B and B, and after the water has passed over and under the brealwater its entire length it is allowed to mingle together in one subdued mass of what may be called the bathingground water of all seaside resorts, for which the improved breakwater is specially intended. vIt will further be seen that as the breakwater floats on the surface of the water it 'has the same effect at all stages of the tide.

In placing the breakwater for coast protection there will be a space of about twenty feet left between each two sets of pontons B B alternately for passage-ways to and from the shore all along that portion of the shore which is to be protected. By the breakwater a harbor can be formed on, any bleak seacoast by placing a series of breakwaters in a judicious Way for such a purpose, and piers.

can be built wherever desired and protected, so that vessels can ride at them to load and unload cargoes.

Having thus fully described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. Aiioating breakwater comprising` a series of pontons pivotally connected with each other and each comprising longitudinal tubes and transverse or cross tubes rigidly connected with the said longitudinal tubes, substantially as shown and described.

2. A iloating breakwater comprising va Series of pontons pivotally connected with each other and each comprising longitudinal tubes and transverse or cross tubes rigidlyconnected with the said longitudinal tubes, and proj ections extending upward from the said transverse or cross tubes, substantiallyas shown and described.

3. A iioating breakwater comprising a series ot' pontons pivotally connected with each other and each comprising longitudinal cylindrical tubes and transverse or cross tubes rigidly connected with the said longitudinal tubes, cylindrical projections extending upward from said transverse or cross tubes, and chains and anchors for anchoring the said pontons to permit their rising and falling with the water on which they iioat'and at the same time holding' them in place, substantially as shown and described.

JOHN M. WHITE. Witnesses:

THEO. G. IfIosfrER, C. SEDGWICK. 

